US finalises steep solar duties on India, Indonesia and Laos

The US Commerce Department has finalised steep duties on imports of solar cells and panels from India, Indonesia and Laos, after determining that producers in the three countries dumped cheap products in the United States and benefited from unfair government subsidies.

Under the final determinations, anti-dumping margins were set at 123.04% for Indian producers, 94.36% for Indonesian producers and 65.43% for producers in Laos.

Countervailing duty rates were fixed at 126.09% for Indian producers, between 73.2% and 173.7% for Indonesian producers, and between 82.03% and 153.67% for Lao producers.

The investigation was brought by the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, whose members include US solar manufacturers First Solar, Hanwha Qcells and Mission Solar Energy.

Tim Brightbill, lead attorney for the Alliance, described the final determinations as "an essential step toward enforcing our trade laws and restoring fair competition for U.S. solar manufacturers and the workers they employ." He added that the group would keep monitoring import data and holding bad actors accountable wherever they move next.

The US International Trade Commission is scheduled to make a final determination on October 14 on whether the imports materially injured or threatened to injure domestic manufacturers. If the commission votes affirmatively, the Commerce Department is expected to issue final duty orders in November.

The case is the latest chapter in a years-long trade dispute over solar imports. The United States first imposed anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on Chinese solar products in 2012, prompting manufacturers there to shift production to other Asian countries.